| Director | Clint Eastwood |
|---|---|
| Genre | crime film, drama film, thriller film, trial film |
| Runtime | 114 min |
| Country | United States |
| Budget | $35 million |
| Box office | $27 million |
In Savannah, Georgia, journalist and recovering alcoholic Justin Kemp is called for jury duty, which he tries to excuse himself from as his wife, Ally, is approaching her due date in a high-risk pregnancy after a previous miscarriage. He is seated in the case of the death of Kendall Carter who, a year prior, had a fight with her boyfriend, James Sythe, at a bar and was later found dead under a bridge; Sythe is charged with her murder.
Hoping to attract voters with a high-profile domestic violence conviction in her run for district attorney, Faith Killebrew acts as prosecutor. Witnesses confirm that Sythe was drunk and disorderly on the night in question and that he followed Kendall after she stormed off. The coroner testifies that her injuries were consistent with a battery by a blunt instrument, character witnesses attest Sythe had a history of violence, and an eyewitness claims to have seen Sythe at the location from which Kendall's body was thrown.
Justin realizes he might have killed Kendall himself: on the night of her death, he was at the same bar as the couple and, when later driving home, he hit something with his car and got out to see what it was, but he assumed it was a deer and kept driving. Concerned that an innocent man might be convicted, Justin seeks advice from his Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor Larry, a defense attorney, who tells him that if he comes forward he would likely be prosecuted and convicted, as no one would believe he was sober because of his previous DUI convictions. Justin resolves to argue for a not-guilty verdict, using his own sobriety story to show that Sythe is capable of change.
Most of the jurors favor a conviction at first, but at Justin's suggestion, fellow juror Harold, a retired detective, argues in favor of examining the facts more closely, citing that the eyewitness testimony could have been skewed by confirmation bias. Another juror notes that there would have been low visibility and another, a medical student, points out that Kendall's injuries could have been the result of a hit and run driver. More jurors begin to agree with this theory, which causes Justin to fear he may be identified as the killer. Harold breaks jury rules by collecting data on body-shop visits following Kendall's death, which includes Justin's car. Justin strategically reveals Harold's research to the judge, who removes Harold from the jury.
Realizing law enforcement officers had primed the eyewitness to identify Sythe at trial, Killebrew grows conflicted about the case and visits the owners of the vehicles on the repair records. Justin's vehicle is on the list but is registered to Ally, who parrots his cover story to Killebrew. Ally later confronts Justin about this and he admits to have been in the bar that night - the due date of the twins they lost to an earlier miscarriage - but did not drink. Now realizing Justin's possible involvement in the death, Ally agrees that he must do what he can to protect their family. Justin tells Larry the trial is headed for a hung jury, but Larry cautions that, as Killebrew has tied the case to her election campaign, Sythe could be re-tried and forcing a mistrial will not save him.
With one juror adamant he will not change his guilty vote, Justin convinces the rest to vote to convict and is not present when the verdict is given. After Sythe is sentenced to life without parole, Killebrew discovers Justin is Ally's husband and confronts him. When she argues that Sythe has been convicted of a crime he is innocent of while the real perpetrator goes free, Justin implores her to leave the case alone, countering that Sythe had a history of violence while he, "a good man", would see his life and family destroyed, adding that Kendall's death was unintentional and that admitting she tried the wrong man could harm her chances at becoming DA. Ally gives birth to their baby and Justin sells his car to remove any connection to the crime; he starts to feel relieved and ready to move on from the case, until Killebrew arrives at his doorstep.